TheChat: Jay Nixon nixes bill that he says would hurt the poor

▪ “Senate Bill 608 would needlessly punish our state’s most vulnerable citizens.” — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon announcing that he was vetoing a bill that would have allowed doctors to charge low-income patients for missing appointments.

A Democrat, Nixon said the proposal would hurt the poor and wouldn’t improve access to care.

▪ Zero. — the amount of money set aside for the University of Missouri Review Commission for its work based on a budget withholding decision by Nixon.

State revenue growth is so slow that Nixon was forced to restrict the spending of more than $115 million, including $750,000 for the MU panel. The commission was to study MU’s rules and regulations and administrative structure and was established following unrest on the Columbia campus last fall. Nixon had no say in who is serving on the panel, and critics have said the commission is loaded with conservatives who are hostile to education.

▪ “The goal isn't to win elections. The goal is to transform America.” — Bernie Sanders in a meeting this week of Democratic lawmakers in Washington.

Sanders was still holding off making an endorsement of Clinton, although signs were emerging that such a move was in the works. The Hillary Clinton camp has released a new college affordability plan as a nod toward Sanders who made that issue a cornerstone of his campaign. The affordability plan was seen as the first step towards a Sanders endorsement.

▪ “He’s making somebody who should be sitting in a jail cell look like the sane choice for president.” — John Noonan, former Air Force officer who served as a national security aide to Mitt Romney in 2012, on how Donald Trump’s campaign bungled the news that the FBI would not recommend criminal charges over Clinton’s handling of classified information.

Some Republicans are growing increasingly frustrated with Trump’s campaign as the national convention approaches. “This should have been a 2-foot putt,” Noonan said of this week’s developments. “But Republicans never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. And that’s what we’ve done.”

Nixon

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